Knitting needle carrier



2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 14, 1946 Patented May 1, 1951 UNITED STATESiATENT OFFICE 2,551,012 KNITTING NEEDLE CARRIER Richard H. Kenah, Vienna, Va.

Application January 14, 1946, Serial No. 641,04?

7 Claims.

. My invention relates to improvements in carriers for knitting needles and the like and it has for one of its primary objects to provide a device for this purpose which provides a very convenient means for storing a large number of knitting needles in such a manner as to keep them straight and usable, while at the same time leaving them open to View so that they may be readily kept arranged in sets and readily removed or replaced.

The invention furthermore contemplates a device of this kind which is very light in weight, is capable of carrying or storing a very large number of needles or similar articles in proportion to size, and which, at the same time is of such size and proportions that it may be easily carried in a womans handbag.

A further object is to provide a knitting needle carrier or the like which is particularly adapted to quantity production from a wide variety of materials, without necessitating any complicated manufacturing process, thus enabling the device to be produced and sold for a very low price.

More specifically, it is an object of the invention to provide novel securing means involving portions individual to the respective needles carried by the device so that the removal of one needle or the like will not tend to reduce the retaining pressure on adjacent needles.

The foregoing and other objects of the invention are attained. by certain novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of the various parts of the preferred examples of my inventive concept which are illustrated in the'accompanying drawings, in which,

Fig. 1 is a perspective view illustrating one form of the invention;

Fig. 1a is a side elevational view of the device disclosed in Fig. 1;

v Fig. 2 is a cross sectional view taken on the line 2 -2 of Fig. l; I

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary longitudinal sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2, and showing the needles securing means; Fig. 4 is a perspective view disclosin a modified form of the invention;

' Fig. 5 is a side elevational view of the device illustrated in Fig, 4, but showing a modified form a of needle point engaging stop at one end'of the panel-like body;

Fig. 6 is a cross sectional view through the device taken on the line 66 of Fig. 4;

Referring specifically to the drawings, by reference characters, it being observed that similar reference characters have been used to designate the'same parts throughout the several views, nu-

' meral H, in the Figs. 1-3 form of the invention,

designates an elongated panel-like body which is lineally corrugated throughout its length to provide opposite surfaces with needle receiving grooves I2.

As illustrated, the needle-receiving grooves 12 are V-shaped in cross section and have an effective depth which is preferably less than the diameter of the needles 13, it being noted that the grooves at one side of the panel H are oifset with respect to the grooves l2 at the opposite side. Thus, when the needles I3 are provided with heads 13a, at one end, the heads of needles in adjacent grooves on opposite sides of the device will not tend, through engagement with one another, to unseat the needle shanks from their grooves i2.

The panel-like body ll may be made of a variety of materials, such as metals, plastic, glass, or even wood, and, of course, the manufacturing process may be a rolling process, a stamping process, or may involve milling or cutting. Any of the aforen-oted processes can be availed of in the production of the lineally corrugated body I I.

By lineally corrugatin the body II to provide thegrooves 12, it will be apparent that the body ll may be made quite light and thin and still have the requisite thickness to prevent bending which would produce distortion of the shanks of the needles 13.

The form of device illustrated in Figs. 1-3, inclusive, is particularly adapted for needles having heads [30; in that it is free of any abutment at each end, the heads 3a being adapted to engage the adjacent end of the panel like body II to limit movement of the needles in onev direction.

In carrying out the invention as illustrated in Figs. 1-3, inclusive, I provide an individual needle retaining finger arranged in opposition to each of the grooves 52 and preferably normally dipping slightly thereinto as illustrated at HS in Fig. 2.

The needle engaging fingers 14 are preferably made of rubber, although-they may be made of felt or in fact any springy yielding material, and Fig. 3 illustrates such fingers as being disposed perpendicularly to the associated groove l2 and preferably dipping slightly thereinto. Such fingers have their rear ends I ia (which, by the way, may take the form of a carrier or backing strip from which the fingers are cut), received in a lineal groove provided at the inner face of 3 a relatively stiff transversely disposed holder IS.

The holder l5, while preferably made of metal, may be made of other materials, and has its ends turned inwardly as at I6 to close the ends of the finger-receiving groove which is defined by the inturned portions of the holder member sides [5b, which are carried by the right angularly bent side portions l5a,all as illustrated in Fig. 3.

The terminals lea of the ends Iii of the finger holder leare, in one instance, bent inwardly as at [5a, and riveted or otherwise secured to the inner wall surfaces of the outermost grooves I2. In the other instance, namely, the holder IE5 at the back of the panel-like body II, as viewed in Fig. 1, the ends lfib of the walls i6 are bent outwardly and are secured to the outer surfaces of the groove providing walls which carry the attaching portions ltd of the first mentioned finger holder l5.

Rivets, pins or the like I! may be availed of for securing the holders to the panel like body and" it will be obvious that said finger holders I 5, in addition to carrying the fingers it, also provide transverse stiffening for the panel like body l'l, so that same may be made extremely thin and still have the requisite stifiness to prevent. transverse bending.

Turning to the retained rear ends I la off the flexible needle engaging fingers l4 it will be noted that they preferably abut the inner surface of the needle holder Hi. It is also to be borne in mind that the spacement of the walls I51) of the finger receiving groove is less than the thickness of the fingers it so that the latter will be effi-- ciently clamped in place and will not be likely to' become detached inservice. Nevertheless, it will be appreciated that the arrangement mentioned lends itself to ready replacement of the fingers I4 Md as occasion may require.

Fig. 3 illustrates how the fingers It will bend as a needle i3 is inserted in the related groove and passed beneath the needle. Obviously, a

very fine friction retaining action is had so as to obviate likelihood of the loss of a needle.

' Turning now to the form of invention which is illustrated in Figs. 4, 5 and 6, the panel like body 1 8 is the same asthat illustrated a't H in Fig. 1-, and has the V-shaped grooves 19 for re=- ceiving the needles 2b, which in the present instance are illustrated as pointed at each end as indicated by reference character 26a.

Here, the panel like body [8 is shown as carrying at one end an abutment 2'! in the form of the rectangular block having in its inner side, holes 22 aligned with each of the grooves 1 9 and adapted to receive and protect the pointed ends 20a of the needles. The block 2| may be secured to'the pane-l like body H3 in any preferred man ner, as for instance by cutting a zig-zag groove in the hole provided surface for receiving the adjacent end of the p'anellike body i8. Of course various other ways of attaching the abutment. block 2i to the body 18 may be availed of.

Ihe Figs. 4-6 form of the invention differsfrom that illustrated in Fig. 1, in another particular, namely, in the form of needle retaining. means employed.

Instead of the perpendicularly disposed rubber or other flexible fingers I4 illustratedin Fig. 1, I employ in this second form of the invention, elongated compoundedly curved fingers 26 individual to each of the grooves l9 and extending lengthwise thereof. The free ends of the fingers 26 are turned upwardly as at 26a so that they may be readily lifted to facilitate withdrawal of a needle 20 from the associated groove l9.

In carrying out the invention as illustrated in Figs. 4-6, inclusive, I provide the rear ends of the fingers 26 with a transverse carrier strip 24. This strip '24 is of relatively stiff material and is preferable integral with the fingers 26. As in the case of the finger holder 15 of Fig. 1, the strip 24 provides transverse reinforcement for the panel likebody.

The finger carrying and panel-like body reinforcing strip 24 has its ends bent inwardly as at 24a, and in the case of the strip 24 in the foreground in Fig. 4, its terminals 24b are bent inwardly. at an angle and are secured to the inner surfaces of the outer walls of the outermost grooves 19 by means of rivets 25 or the like.

However, in the case of the finger carrying strip 24; at the back of the device, as viewed in Fig. 4, the end walls 24a of said strip have their terminals bent outwardly as at 24c; and are secured to the outer surfaces of the same walls which carry the attaching terminals 241) of the companion finger carrying s'trip24.

Fig. 5 is the same in all respects as Fig. 4', except that instead of' employing a needle abutment block- 21, having apertures, I employ a block 21 having its inner longitudinal surface rabbeted as at 2121 to provide inwardly slanting recesses at opposite sides of the panel l-8"for' receiving and protecting the points of the needles 26. The block 21 may be secured to the panel 18 in any preferred fashion, such as by a zig-zag groove, as mentioned in connection with Fig; 4, and designated by reference character 2-3.

In addition tothe needle point protection function of the block 2| of Fig. 4, and the-block 2-! of Fig. 5, it will be appreciated that such blocks also serve to prevent transverse bending of the panel like body 1 8. And while on this subject, it is Very desirable to space the finger carriers [5 (Fig. 1) and the finger carrier or strip 24 (Fig. 4), lengthwise oftheir carrying panels so as to provide stiffening means at different points inthe length or the carrying panels. This' enable's me to make the panels of lighter material than would otherwise be" practical and still afford requisite protection for the needles or similar articles carried thereby.

From the foregoing description, taken in connect-ion with the accompanying drawings, it will be readily appreciated that I have provided a very light, compact and efiicient device for carrying knitting needles. Although knitting needles have been particularly referred to, it is within the scope of the invention to carry any analogous or similar articles.

The form of panel employed may be varied considerably. For instance, in Fig. '7, I disclose a panel wherein the groove -providing corrugation takes the form of 9, series of curves, so as to provide grooves 2811' from a' panel 28; which will be curved. Thus, if the device is made of metal, there is no chance of sharp points marring the surfaceof a table.

In Fig. 8, the grooves. 29a, formed from the panel 29, are square or rectangular in cross section, and, of course, therewill be fiat surfaces for engagement with the" table or other supporting surface, so that the device will have the sameadvantage as mentioned in connection with Fig. 7.

In Fig. 9, the panel-like body 30 is not strictly corrugated and lends itself especially to molding. from plastic in the provision of a carrier body having needle-receiving grooves 30a. Of course,

all of the panel-like bodies may be made of plastic and, in fact, of the various materials mentioned in the earlier portion of this specification.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A holder for knitting needles or the like comprising a panel like body having lineally extending grooves on opposite sides, individual retaining means for needles or the like carried in said grooves, transversely disposed body stiffening members at opposite sides of said body and offset laterally of one another and secured to said body at least at the sides thereof, and said body stiffening members carrying said needle retaining means.

2. A holder for knitting needles or the like comprising a preferably elongated body having a plurality of adjacent lineally extending needlereceiving surface grooves, an individual yielding needle-retaining means overlying each of the several grooves, each of said individual needleretaining means comprising a compressible and flexible finger disposed substantially perpendicular to and in approximate engagement with its groove, a transverse stiffening member extending across said grooves and secured to the body at opposite sides thereof and providing a carrier for said needle-retaining fingers, said combined carrier and stiffening member having an inner surface groove rather narrower than the thickness of said fingers and receiving the same, whereby the side walls of said groove compress the fingers and retain same in place.

3. A holder for knitting needles or the like comprising an elongated panel-like body, said body having lineally extending needle-receiving grooves in opposite sides thereof, the grooves in one surface of the body being staggered with respect to the grooves in the opposite surface thereof, transversely extending needle-retaining means disposed at each side of said body, said needle-retaining means having yielding needleengaging portions, and a stifiening abutment carried at one end of said panel-like body and having portions extending outwardly to close the proximate ends of said grooves and serve as an abutment and stop for the needles.

4. A holder for knitting needles or the like comprising a relatively thin panel-like body having lineally extending needle-receiving surface grooves in opposite sides thereof, yielding fingerlike needle-retaining members individual to each of the grooves, a rigid carrier for said fingers, securing means for said carrier engaged with said body at the side edges thereof, and said needle-retaining fingers comprising resilient flexible members disposed substantially perpendicularly to the associated needle-receiving groove, and said carrier comprising a transversely disposed body having a lineal inner surface groove receiving the rear ends of said fingers, the width of said groove being narrower than the thickness of said fingers whereby to fixedly retain the same in place, and means at the ends of said carrier and secured to the side edges of said panel-like body whereby to retain the body and carrier assembled.

5. A display holder for knitting needles or the like and adapted to support and expose the same throughout substantially their entire lengths, said holder comprising an elongated flexible body of thin stock having at opposite sides laterally spaced lineally extending stiffening ribs providing needle-receiving grooves therebetween and extending throughout the length of the body, the

grooves and ribs at one side being offset with respect to the grooves and ribs at the other side whereby to allow space to accommodate needle heads at one end of the body without bringing same into engagement to thereby distort the flexible needles, a transversely extending stiffening brace extending across the body at each surface whereby to prevent bending of the body along the line of said grooves, and needle-retaining portions incorporated in each stiffening brace and extending into the respective grooves.

6. A display holder for knitting needles or the like and adapted to support and expose the same throughout substantially their entire lengths, said holder comprising an elongated, flexible body of thin stock having at opposite sides laterally spaced lineally extending stifiening ribs providing needle-receiving grooves therebetween and extending throughout the length of the body, the grooves and ribs at one side being offset with respect to the grooves and ribs at the other side whereby to allow space to accommodate needle heads at one end of the body Without bringing same into engagement to thereby distort the flexible needles, a body stiffening member secured to said body at one end and coextensive in width with same, said member having portions closing the ends of said needlereceiving grooves whereby to provide stops for adjacent needle ends, and yieldable body-carried needle retaining means disposed transversely of the body at opposite sides thereof whereby to retain the needles in said grooves.

'7. A display holder for knitting needles or the like and adapted to support and expose the same throughout substantially their entire lengths, said holder comprising an elongated body of thin stock having lineally extending stiffening ridges projecting from at least one surface, said ridges being laterally spaced to provide needlereceiving surface grooves in at least one surface of said body, a transverse stiffening brace secured at least at its ends to opposite sides of the body, yielding needle-retaining means carried by said transverse brace and urged into contact with the needles or the like in the respective grooves, a transverse abutment providing a receiving recess into which one end of the body is insertable whereby to stiffen same and provide an abutment closing the adjacent ends of said grooves, said body providing lineally extending ridges and grooves at opposite sides, the respective ridges and grooves at one side being staggered with respect to those at the opposite side and there being a transverse stiffening brace at opposite sides of the body with needle-retaining means carried by each, said stiifening braces being offset with respect to each other, and said body-receiving abutment projecting beyond each side of the body to close the ends of each set of grooves.

RICHARD H. KENAI-I.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,225,092 Williams May 8, 1917 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 21,665 Austria Oct. 10, 1905 397,974 Great Britain Sept. 7, 1933 

